Wednesday, November 14, 2012

When The Real World Meets Fiction

Sometimes, I find myself writing into a scene something that's on my mind other than the story. What should I do? Sometimes, I leave it. Other times if an odd thought (My mind wanders due to ADD.) intrudes into the story and it doesn't fit, I need to remove it.

But what about those happy accidents? If they will make your story stronger than by all means keep that stray thought in. Sometimes, our brain does things that we haven't had time to catch up with. That doesn't mean its bad...

I am a pantser, so I am always surprised by where my story takes me. Even so, things pop up from time to time that I have just heard... a stray word... a conversation... the weather... whatever? It's then up to me to decide whether that new tidbit belongs in the story.

For NaNo, however, we should leave those happy accidents in the story and edit later. Editing during NaNo can cause us not to reach our goals. However, some go crazy if they don't edit. Don't get me wrong I find myself changing words or fixing spelling all the time, even in November. Is this bad? Not in the long run, perhaps not even in the short run. So, it's up for you to decide.

The most important thing during National Writing Month is that you're writing everyday! That is the lesson we all can take away from this crazy month of mad-dash writing... WRITE EVERY DAY!

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About Me

I write about vampires, shapeshifters, witches and the occassional zombie among other things. I published two collections of my flash fiction, Flashes From My Mind and More Flashes From My Mind, both available on Amazon. In 2012 I released, Mikey's Tail, a children's book about a little boy, who wants a tail. I have written two novels, which I hope to get published someday. I am, also, an amateur photographer. I live with my sweetie and our pets in Las Vegas.. Read more about me at http://ritalsmith.com. My author photo was taken by Erica Tabet.